SAIS or SIS

[DaDitka]

Hey Gradcafe,

I have been wrestling with all of the pros and cons of my offers for the past few weeks. My decision making process keeps coming full circle and every few days I find myself back at square one.

I applied to Georgetown MSFS (waitlisted), LSE Msc. International Political Economy (accepted, no aid), Fletcher (rejected), SAIS (accepted, no aid), and SIS International Economic Relations (accepted, dean's assistant award).

I think I may have finally ruled out LSE for various reasons, the primary one being I have heard it is hard to find a job in government agencies not coming from a US program.

This leaves me deciding between SAIS and SIS. If money were not an issue I would easily choose SAIS. However, as we live in a world with constraints the decision is not so simple.

My focus at either program will be international economics with a quasi regional focus in Asia (specifically China, I speak some Mandarin and have studied and worked there before).

The SIS international economic relations program is a good fit and one of my best friends is finishing up his first year at SIS and loves it. On top of SIS costing less, the Dean's Assistant Award offers $17,000 a year in tuition remission as well as a 10-20 hour a week faculty assistant position which would pay $12 an hour. As I will be paying for my masters myself and only have enough savings to cover living expenses this aid package would go a long way toward making me near debt free come graduation. A huge advantage in AU's favor. Also, although this is not a deciding factor, one of my best friends is currently finishing his first year at SIS and loves it. Going to the same school and living together would be an awesome experience. Again, this shouldn't and won't really affect my decision.

On the other hand, SAIS has always been my first choice and my understanding is that the strengths of the SAIS program are precisely my interests and intended concentrations. As for many of us though, the problem is the cost. I am just not sure I can justify the added cost of going to SAIS over SIS. I spoke with my undergraduate adviser and reference letter supplier and his recommendation was that the reputation, and marginally better program at SAIS isn't worth going into that much debt for.

So, now I am soliciting any and all advice.

Is the SAIS name, network, and program worth the extra cost over SIS? Or is it just crazy to take out that much debt for an MA in IR?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Sincerely,

-DaDitka

[JAubrey]

Hey Gradcafe,

I have been wrestling with all of the pros and cons of my offers for the past few weeks. My decision making process keeps coming full circle and every few days I find myself back at square one.

I applied to Georgetown MSFS (waitlisted), LSE Msc. International Political Economy (accepted, no aid), Fletcher (rejected), SAIS (accepted, no aid), and SIS International Economic Relations (accepted, dean's assistant award).

I think I may have finally ruled out LSE for various reasons, the primary one being I have heard it is hard to find a job in government agencies not coming from a US program.

This leaves me deciding between SAIS and SIS. If money were not an issue I would easily choose SAIS. However, as we live in a world with constraints the decision is not so simple.

My focus at either program will be international economics with a quasi regional focus in Asia (specifically China, I speak some Mandarin and have studied and worked there before).

The SIS international economic relations program is a good fit and one of my best friends is finishing up his first year at SIS and loves it. On top of SIS costing less, the Dean's Assistant Award offers $17,000 a year in tuition remission as well as a 10-20 hour a week faculty assistant position which would pay $12 an hour. As I will be paying for my masters myself and only have enough savings to cover living expenses this aid package would go a long way toward making me near debt free come graduation. A huge advantage in AU's favor. Also, although this is not a deciding factor, one of my best friends is currently finishing his first year at SIS and loves it. Going to the same school and living together would be an awesome experience. Again, this shouldn't and won't really affect my decision.

On the other hand, SAIS has always been my first choice and my understanding is that the strengths of the SAIS program are precisely my interests and intended concentrations. As for many of us though, the problem is the cost. I am just not sure I can justify the added cost of going to SAIS over SIS. I spoke with my undergraduate adviser and reference letter supplier and his recommendation was that the reputation, and marginally better program at SAIS isn't worth going into that much debt for.

So, now I am soliciting any and all advice.

Is the SAIS name, network, and program worth the extra cost over SIS? Or is it just crazy to take out that much debt for an MA in IR?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Sincerely,

-DaDitka

It depends where in government you want to work but if it is in defense / security, foreign policy, economics / treasury, IMF, WB, etc. SAIS is by far the better bet. But you have to decide how much the cost is worth to you. My 2 cents are, especially now, SAIS is worth the investment.

[yo_yo86]

Many schools (SAIS, SFS, etc.) are fairly adement that they won't let you defer for financial reasons. After getting my financial aid packages, I considered deferring until I had some more money saved. The various financial aid websites and FAQs put a kibosh on that idea.